News

Nestlé reformulates US ice cream

26 Apr 2016

Nestlé Dreyer’s Ice Cream has announced key ingredient improvements to six US brands including Dreyer’s, Häagen-Dazs, Outshine, Skinny Cow, Nestlé Ice Cream and Nestlé Drumstick.

Nestlé Dreyer’s Ice Cream has announced key ingredient improvements to six US brands including Dreyer’s, Häagen-Dazs, Outshine, Skinny Cow, Nestlé Ice Cream and Nestlé Drumstick. The company said that this is the latest milestone in a multi-year effort to update existing products across the entire portfolio of brands. With a focus on simplifying ingredient lists while maintaining the same taste, the newest changes vary across more than 100 products, with examples including the removal of artificial colours and flavours, high fructose corn syrup and GMO ingredients. Other noteworthy accomplishments, Nestlé said, include the use of fresh milk from cows not treated with rBST, the addition of more real fruit or fruit juice and a reduction in sugar by an average of 11% on select products.

In December of last year, Nestlé also announced that it will transition to using only cage-free eggs in all of its U.S. food products, including ice cream, within the next five years. Nationwide roll-out for the newly updated products began in March 2016.

“Nestlé Dreyer’s Ice Cream understands that consumers want to know what’s in their food, where those ingredients come from and how the food products they purchase are made,” said Robert Kilmer, president, Nestlé Dreyer’s Ice Cream. “We are the industry leader when it comes to innovation and, as consumer demand centers on transparency and choice, we are responding with new ways to make ice cream even better. Using simpler ingredients that our consumers can recognize, and removing those that don’t belong, is a natural next step for our brands.”

The company cites as an example of its ingredient innovation Dreyer’s Slow Churned which features half the fat and one-third fewer calories than full-fat ice cream, and was introduced in 2004, when consumer preference focused on lower calorie and reduced fat options, without sacrifice of flavour. Now, Nestlé has announced nine of its most popular Dreyer’s Slow Churned flavours will be branded Slow Churned Simple Recipes, to reflect their simpler ingredient profile. The improved recipes feature a label with seven or eight ingredients, reduced from an average of 22. Additional changes include the removal of all artificial colours and flavours, high fructose corn syrup and GMO ingredients along with the addition of fresh milk from cows not treated with rBST. Examples of specific ingredients removed include carrageenan and xantham gum, replaced with ingredients such as pectin. The team, led by research scientist Michael Sharp, are said to have analysed every ingredient and recipe to determine the opportunity to simplify the ingredient list.

“Our mission is to deliver the best product for the consumer,” said Sharp. “In the case of Simple Recipes, this meant maintaining the great taste and texture of an established and well-liked product with simpler ingredients that consumers understand.”

Nestlé plans to update the remaining Slow Churned flavours by the end of 2017 and will continue to update other products across all brands in its portfolio.